


vode mentality

by luckee



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Pining, clone cuddle pile
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-15
Updated: 2020-06-15
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:28:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24727510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/luckee/pseuds/luckee
Summary: In which Cody and the rest of the 212th are determined to get Obi-Wan to rest.
Relationships: 212th Attack Battalion & Obi-Wan Kenobi, CC-2224 | Cody/Obi-Wan Kenobi
Comments: 36
Kudos: 745





	vode mentality

**Author's Note:**

> I can’t get enough of Cody and Obi-Wan being soft and married. Also I swear the Jedi do not use the Force enough in battle, so I have to assume drawing from it too much leads to baby yoda levels of exhaustion or worse. Right? Anyway, here’s an excuse for fluff.

“What the kriffing hell is that?”

Cody followed Longshot’s line of sight to the far end of the canyon where they were currently being pushed back into a corner by the enemy. A B2 unit was equipped with some kind of heavy blaster, something far larger than the standard cannon. The droid seemed barely capable of carrying it. Whatever it was, the droid was closing in on a cluster of troopers preoccupied with taking out a Separatist tank.

Cody sent a warning to retreat over the comms but it was too late.

Blastfire erupted, a thick plume of smoke arising from the south end of the canyon.

There wasn’t time to react as the B2 unit swiveled its blaster to rain another unprecedented level of fire. Cody blasted the battle droids blocking his way and made to charge the B2, but stopped in his tracks when a swirl of blue flew past him. The figure leapt, attacking the B2 from above and cutting it clean in half. The droid managed to fire off a few rounds into the dirt as it fell to pieces. 

He caught up to the general, who was doing a poor job of concealing his expression of fury.

“We need to divert the droids away from the wreckage so we can safely retrieve any survivors.”

Cody nodded in agreement and sent the order over the comms.

Wooley ran up to them, panting. “Bad news. There’s more approaching.”

“How many?” Cody prompted.

“I saw at least twenty, possibly more.”

“ _Force._ This was a trap. They were waiting for the right moment to deploy their new weapon, catch us by surprise.” The horror on Obi-Wan’s face mirrored how he felt. “It’s going to be a bloodbath.”

“We can take them,” Cody said, because he had to. His eyes strayed to the scene of the demolished tank. Troopers were there, some pulling bodies out of the debris, others shielding them from incoming blastfire. 

“Have everyone fall back. Divert the battle away from here. I’ll take care of the heavy artillery.”

Cody fought to keep his voice even. “There’s too many for you to take on alone. If we can get out of the canyon we can attack from above—” 

“Follow orders, Commander,” Obi-Wan snapped, the bite of it startling him, before the _jettii_ ran off toward the enemy.

Wooley looked to him for instruction, and Cody gave a sharp nod, grateful that the bucket hid the frustration blooming on his face. He spoke into the comms. “All troopers fall back.”

Cody and Wooley made quick work of the droids in the vicinity. He fully intended to follow after the general once the area was clear. With the dark towering forms of the B2 droids advancing, Cody caught sight of Obi-Wan in his peripheral vision, watched as his arms raised in the air, his expression one of intense concentration.

At first Cody didn’t understand what was happening. The B2s stuttered to a halt, aimed their blasters at the lone enemy before them, and for a few tense seconds nothing happened. Dread pooled in his stomach.

Then, the B2 units all combusted at once, a loud series of explosions reverberating through the canyon and spraying shrapnel everywhere. Obi-Wan stood his ground against the flying debris, and then his body swayed once before he fell, limp, to the ground.

Cody didn’t think, he just ran. When he knelt down to check for a pulse, Obi-Wan was cold to the touch. His pulse was faint but there and he sent a silent _thank you_ up to the gods. He braced his hands under the general’s back and knees before lifting his unconscious body up, holding him tight to his chest. He was a complete dead weight in his arms, head rolled back, face marred with dirt and blood from fresh cuts, and it reminded Cody far too much of carrying his fallen _vode_ for comfort. With the B2s taken out of commission and the renewed vigor to fight he could hear over the comms, the battle was coming to a rapid halt around them as he tried to get Obi-Wan back to the ship alive.

Cody felt the body in his arms shift and looked down to watch Obi-Wan’s eyes blink open blearily.

“Put me down,” he said weakly.

Cody ignored him, only tightening his grip on him. 

Obi-Wan’s head fell slack against his chest. “I can stand on my own.”

“No, you can’t,” Cody said bluntly. There was no time to indulge Obi-Wan’s stubbornness. He could sense that Obi-Wan was barely holding onto consciousness as it was. 

“We need to get back out there.”

“I need to get you back to the ship,” Cody countered.

Obi-Wan squirmed, but Cody did not give in to the man’s weak attempts at getting down. Obi-Wan lost the fight in him almost immediately, his eyes sliding shut and his body going completely limp again. Cody was running now, determined to get to the med bay as quickly as possible.

 _Vode_ were laid up on patient beds; a couple sat in chairs, armor bloodied and beaten up. Helix looked up from attending to a shiny and his eyes widened in shock at the sight of them.

“He overexerted himself in the Force,” Cody offered as quick explanation. 

Helix motioned for him to put Obi-Wan on one of the empty beds. Cody laid his charge down carefully so that his lolling head didn’t hit the bed too hard. 

Cody watched in silence as Helix examined the unconscious _jettii_ , who didn’t so much as twitch under all the poking and prodding. “Well, there’s not much externally wrong other than some scrapes and bruises. Heart rate and body temperature are low. All of his energy must be focused on keeping him alive.”

“Can you do anything?”

“I’m not sure there’s much I can do,” Helix admitted with a sigh. “It’s metaphysical. His body needs time to repair the damage done.”

Obi-Wan stirred and slowly became aware of his surroundings. “Why am I in medical?” It sounded like simply speaking took a fair amount of effort.

“You’ve been out cold,” Helix said. “It seems you’ve depleted your energy stores. I’m not well-versed in use of the Force but your body’s showing all the signs of exhaustion.”

Obi-Wan struggled to sit up. Cody started to move to support him but thought better of it. “I feel fine, if a little tired.”

Cody and Helix shared a look over his head.

“Sir, you need to rest,” Helix said. “You’re very weak right now.”

“Wooley’s reported that they’ve taken out the last of the droids. A small troop is checking that the village is secure,” Cody said.

“Oh,” Obi-Wan said. He still wasn’t deterred as he forced himself to a standing position. “Good. I’m going to warn the Council of this new Separatist weapon and get a report filed. The sooner we can understand it, the sooner we can strategize a better way to disarm them.” 

“You really do need to rest,” Helix insisted.

“Thank you for the checkup, Helix,” Obi-Wan said, gingerly walking across the med bay, “Please keep me informed about everyone’s condition.”

“Will do,” Helix said with a grimace.

Cody followed the general out, scowling. “I’ll contact the Council for you.”

Obi-Wan shook his head weakly. “It’s my responsibility.”

“Understood, sir, but you, you were…” Cody was finding it hard to articulate just what it felt like to see Obi-Wan collapse on the battlefield. How it felt to run while holding his limp body to his chest. “For a second it looked like we had lost you out there.”

Obi-Wan paused at that, turning to look at him. His face easily betrayed his exhaustion. “Alright,” he finally relented with a sigh. “But first I’m going to shower this grime off. I suggest you do the same. You should rest yourself, Commander, we’ve got a long trip back.”

Cody wasn’t exactly sure how Obi-Wan was planning to shower when he could barely stand upright. But he knew he had no right to offer to help him. Their relationship wasn't like that. So he let him go. 

“I’ll check on you in an hour, sir.” Obi-Wan would be resting for more than an hour if Cody had any say in it. But when it came to the general he rarely had a say in anything regarding his health. 

Obi-Wan looked put out for a moment before he schooled his expression and offered an unconvincing smile. “Great, thank you.”

* * *

After checking on the injured troopers in the med bay and getting a report from the last ones returning from the field, Cody headed straight for Obi-Wan’s cabin.

He was just in time to catch the general coming down the hall.

“Commander,” Obi-Wan said evenly.

Standing was obviously taking a lot of effort. Cody could see him swaying on his feet clear as day.

“I was just going to check the med bay.”

“I already did that. Everyone’s in stable condition.”

Cody held out his canteen. Obi-Wan accepted it with a questioning look. “Tea. I figured I’d find you sneaking off to the command center.” Cody knew his general well, enough to know that he would not rest unless absolutely forced. It made Cody’s job of keeping him alive and well rather difficult.

Obi-Wan drank from the canteen, his movements shaky. At least he was clean and out of his damaged armor now. His eyes were a bit unfocused. “We lost too many today.”

“We would’ve lost a lot more if it wasn’t for you.” Cody took a risk and grabbed the general’s arm above the elbow, gently steering him down the hall. “You need to lay down. In a bed.”

“I don’t have time for that right now.”

“I’m making you time.” Cody made sure his tone brooked no argument.

After a stretch of walking, Obi-Wan said, “Are you taking me to the barracks?”

Instead of replying, Cody asked the question that had been prickling in the back of his mind. “Did you know you would survive that?”

Obi-Wan didn’t answer, and that was confirmation enough. If the way he was not-so-subtly leaning his weight on Cody and letting his eyes slide shut every few seconds wasn’t confirmation already.

The handful of troopers in the room raised their heads when they entered, and upon realizing the general was joining them they stood to salute.

“Good to see you alive, sir,” Waxer said.

“What you did was incredible.”

“And dangerous,” Boil muttered.

"I... I'm glad to see you alive as well."

Cody nudged a flushing Obi-Wan over to a bed and made him sit down on it.

“Is this…?”

“My bed,” Cody confirmed. 

Obi-Wan held the canteen close to his chest and looked around slowly, apparently studying the bed. He really did look like he was struggling to stay awake.

“Get some rest, General. No sneaking out this time.” Finding himself staring too long at Obi-Wan’s sleepy, half-lidded expression as he eased himself down on the bed, Cody shook himself and turned to leave.

“Cody?”

“Yes, sir?”

“You’re not staying?” And oh, now there was a frown on the general’s pretty, tired face.

“I’m just going to contact the Council for you, inform them of today’s events.”

“Oh. Very well, then. Thank you.”

Cody tried to ignore the impish look shared by a pair of shinies as he walked past them.

* * *

Waxer bounded up to him as soon as he neared the barracks. “We need your help.”

Cody sighed. “What did he do?” 

“We’ve had to stop him from leaving every five minutes. He keeps saying he feels like he’s intruding. I think he’s embarrassed,” Waxer informed him. “He can barely keep his eyes open. He seems cold, too. Been shivering.”

Cody found the general in much the state Waxer had described. Odd Ball was actively trying to stop him from getting out of bed.

“You’re back,” Obi-Wan greeted upon seeing him. He did look cold. Still tired and pale and barely awake.

“And you’re still not asleep.”

“Let’s move the beds together,” Waxer suggested. “That way we can keep the general warm.”

“What?”

“Good idea,” Cody said, and started pushing the bed nearest to him until it was pressed up against his own bed.

Obi-Wan looked around confused as others joined in, pushing the beds together until they had a cluster against the wall. One by one they started settling down for sleep. A few shinies who had lied down already left their beds, bringing with them pillows and blankets to add to the pile.

“This really isn't necessary,” Obi-Wan started, unsure.

“We do this all the time to stay warm in the tents,” Waxer said, snuggling in with a pillow next to the general.

Boil appeared with a heavy wool blanket in his arms, looking a bit hesitant. “I bought it when we were deployed on a tundra planet. Pretty warm, figured you could use it.”

Obi-Wan looked abashed.

“That’s perfect,” Cody said, taking it from Boil’s hands to spread it out over Obi-Wan. Eventually he relented, laying back down onto the bed, now the lone _jettii_ in the middle of a pile of troopers. Cody climbed over a few of his brothers to take his place next to the general, burying in under the heavy blanket. He was careful to leave a sliver of space between himself and Obi-Wan, but wasn’t strong enough to resist lightly draping an arm over his side. To stave off any shivering that might occur.

One of his _vode_ turned the lights off.

“I’m not sure what to say,” Obi-Wan said into the dark. “Thank you, I suppose would be a start.”

“We don’t leave our own to suffer alone,” Longshot said from his place somewhere near their legs.

A few brothers rumbled in agreement.

“Thank you for pulling me out of there,” Obi-Wan murmured to him, very quietly like he was telling a secret. He reached up and squeezed Cody’s hand, pulling it closer to his chest. After a moment he shifted back, closing the space between them so Obi-Wan’s back was pressed flush against his chest.

Cody’s mouth went dry as his heart beat faster. “Just don’t try something like that again, General. I don’t want to make a habit of carrying you off the battlefield.”

Obi-Wan absently rubbed his thumb back and forth over his knuckles, keeping Cody’s hand in place over his heart. “I’d hate to break that promise.”

Cody let himself indulge this one time, tilting his head down to brush his nose against Obi-Wan’s hair. It tickled in a pleasant way. “Then try to keep it.”

Slowly he listened to Obi-Wan’s breathing even out as he fell into sleep.

* * *

Cody woke up to the feeling of the bed shifting under him. 

In the dark of the barracks Cody could just make out a figure carefully maneuvering around the pile of sleeping _vode._ No one else seemed to stir, the only sound some snoring and a faint creak as Obi-Wan slipped out the door.

Cody caught up to him in the hall. “I hope you’re not headed to the command center.”

The general had the decency to at least look a little guilty. “It's time I report to the Council.”

“I covered what was important with General Windu. Anything else can wait until we land,” Cody said. Then, knowing he was fighting a losing battle, “How are you feeling?”

Obi-Wan's expression softened. “I’m feeling much better, Cody.”

Obi-Wan did look better. Color had returned to his cheeks, and he looked more relaxed, the creases around his eyes less severe. Seeing the general’s assurance actually reflected in his face quieted something in Cody’s head, giving him a peace of mind he hadn’t felt since he watched Obi-Wan's body fall limp.

“Thank you for being so insistent about making me rest for a few hours. Force knows where I’d be without you. And the rest of your brothers,” Obi-Wan added belatedly.

Cody shrugged to hide the emotion constricting his throat. “You’re the best general we could have asked for. We can’t lose you.”

He wondered how much of his heart he was laying bare. For an agonizing moment Obi-Wan simply watched him with those fiercely astute eyes, as if reading something on his face. Then, as if making up his mind, he stepped forward until he was standing right in front of him. 

His heart leapt as Obi-Wan reached up to gently cup his face. “And you’re the best commander I could have asked for.” A smile graced Obi-Wan’s lips before he leaned forward and pressed a kiss to Cody’s cheek. Cody could only stare at him as he pulled away, heart pounding in his ears. 

“Go back to sleep. I’ll come find you when we land.”

His cheek was still tingling as he settled back in amongst his brothers.


End file.
